Are we our Avatars?

 

Waterfall contemplations @ Vox Populi

 

 

 

In Second Life, Ive created an avatar that just feels right—like slipping into a version of myself that had been waiting for me all along. Over time, it stopped feeling like a character and started feeling like me. Every little detail—the shape of the nose, the way the body moves, even the way the clothes fit—became part of my identity. I’ve seen others switch things up all the time, reinvent themselves with each new update or trend. But I’ve never felt the need. This avatar holds memories, relationships, and moments that shaped who I am here. Changing it would feel like walking away from part of myself. I don’t care if it's not the newest mesh body or the most fashionable look. It’s not just an avatar—it’s me. And every time I log in, there’s comfort in that familiarity. It reminds me where I’ve been, and who I’ve become.

  I’ve become deeply connected to my avatar because, in many ways, it’s a digital extension of me. Over time—especially in a space like Second Life, where you live through your avatar—it’s become part of my identity. It’s how people recognize me, how they relate to me, and honestly, how I relate to myself. It holds memories, emotions, and a kind of continuity that grounds me in this virtual world

 When someone I deeply care about changed their avatar, it affected me more than I expected. It’s strange, how something that seems so simple—a new shape, a different face, new clothes—can feel like a shift in the ground beneath me. I’ve grown attached to that version of them, the one I’ve laughed with, shared moments with, recognized instantly across a crowd. That avatar became part of how I know them, how I feel them.

So when they changed it, I couldn't help but feel a kind of loss. It’s not that I don’t respect their need to grow or express themselves differently—it’s that their old avatar held meaning for me. It was familiar, grounding, and emotionally loaded in ways I probably didn’t even realize until it was gone. I start to wonder: Will I still feel the same connection? Will they still feel like them to me?

It’s not about the visuals, really. It’s about attachment, memory, and the quiet comfort of familiarity. I know they’re still the same person underneath it all, and that is the person I adore, but part of me has to catch up—has to learn how to recognize them again in this new skin. And that takes time, and trust, and sometimes, a little grief for what was.

 Have you given your avatar a makeover lately or has a close friend updated their avatar? How did that go? Id love to hear other peoples stories on the subject!

~Aura